We placed a warning on a Tweet from @realDonaldTrump for making a potentially misleading claim about an election. This action is in line with our Civic Integrity Policy. More here: https://t.co/k6OkjNXEAm
— Twitter Safety (@TwitterSafety) November 4, 2020
In a statement shared shortly after the label appeared, Twitter confirmed the tweet had broken its rules around “making a potentially misleading claim about an election.” The company previously said it would label tweets that break its rules around declaring victory prematurely, or making false claims about the election or ballot-counting process.
On Facebook, where Trump posted the same message, Facebook applied a more vague label that says “final results may be different from initial vote counts, as ballot counting will continue for days or weeks.” The social network also labeled another Trump post, which said “I will be making a statement tonight. A big WIN!” That post bears a similar notice that “ballots are still being counted,” and a winner has not been projected. Twitter has so far opted to not label that tweet.
Screenshot/Facebook
Trump’s claims were among the first major test of social media platform’s election-night policies, which both Facebook and Twitter have spent months preparing for. Earlier in the night, Twitter labeled a tweet from Trump’s campaign about the results in South Carolina. Both companies previously said they would not allow either presidential candidate to declare victory before results are clear, and that they would rely on state election officials and national media organizations to make those calls.